Device for opening or closing elevator-doors.



PATENTED JUNE 21, 1904.

H. M. JENKINS. DBVIOE FOR OPENING 0R CLOSING ELEVATOR nouns;

APP-LIOATION FILED JULY -15, 1903'.

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H. M. JENKINS.

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PATENT OFFICE.

E JEVICE FOR OPENING OR CLOSING ELEVATOR-DOORS- SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent 'No. 763,184, dated. June 21, 1904.

Application filed July 15, 1903. Serial No. 165,569. (No model.)

To alZ whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, HOWARD M. JENKINS, of the city of Allegheny, county of Allegheny, and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Devices for Opening and Closing .Elevator-Doors, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, in which Figure 1 is a plan view of a portion of the top of an elevator-car, showing my improvement. Fig. 2 isa front elevation of the same. Fig. 3is a side elevation of a portion of the top of the elevator-car provided with my improvement and also showing a portion of the sinuous way extending vertically in the elevator-shaft. Fig. 4 is a side view of the bars extended from the door with which the door-closing devices engage. Fig. 5 is a front view of the same. Fig. 6 is a detached View of the looking-clogs. Fig. 7 is an enlarged view, partially in section, of the checkvalves. Fig. 8 is a vertical sectional view of the same on the line VIII VIII of Fig. 7. Fig. 9 is a detachedend view of the valve-plug. Fig. 10 is a vertical sectional view of the valve-plug. Fig. 11 is an end view of the valve-casing; and Fig- 12 is a diagrammatic view showing the sinuous way, the doorways being indicated at a.

Like symbols of reference indicate like parts wherever they occur.

My invention relates to devices for opening and closing the doors of elevators and other similar doors; and it consists in a traveler mounted on the car, which traveler is provided witha finger adapted to engage with the door, a motor for driving the traveler, and devices for engaging the finger with the door, releasing it therefrom, and in devices for locking the door, hereinafter more fully set forth. 7

I will now describe my invention, so that others skilled in the art may manufacture and use the same.

In the drawings, 2 represents the top of the elevator-car, secured to which are the bearings or journals 3, in which is mounted the splined bar or shaft 4. Mounted on the bar 4 is the traveler 5, which is provided with collars 6, which slide on the bar 4. Situate between the collars 6 is a finger 8, which is preferably integral with a feathered collar situate between the collars 6 and sliding on the bar 4, the feather of the fingered collar engaging with the spline of the shaft 4, so that the finger 8 may be brought from a vertical into a horizontal position by the rotation of the shaft 4. Secured to the traveler 5 by eyebolts 9 is a sprocketchain 10, which passes over the sprocket-wheels 11 12 at opposite endsof the top of the elevator-car. These sprocket-wheels are mounted in suitable bearings 13 14 on top of the car.

Mounted on the shaft of the sprocket-wheel 12 is a pinion 15, which engages with the rack 16, which rack is secured to the end of the piston-rod 17, which has its piston in the pneumatic cylinder 18. At the opposite ends of the cylinder 18 are the pipes 19 20, which lead to the check-valves 21 22. These checkvalves are adapted to lessen or cut oif the flow of air to the cylinder 18 as the piston approaches the end ,of its stroke, and thereby to prevent the slamming of the elevator-door, and they consist of two valve-chambers provided with pistons 23 which pistons are connected by the rack portion 24, which engages with a sector-pinion 25, which is keyed to a sector 26. This sector 26 meshes with a pinion 27, which is keyed to the shaft of the sprocket-wheel12, so that when the piston 17 has nearly completed its stroke the pinion 27 will have moved the sector 26 sufficiently to close the valves 28 by the movement of the pistons 23 through the rotation of the pinion meshing with the rack 24. It will be noticed that the valve 28 is tapered, so that the shutting off of the air shall be gradual.

Leading to the check-valves 21 22 are the air-pipes 29 30, connected to the valve 31, which is situate in the body of the car and is provided with a handle 82. This valve 31 is composed of a plug 31, having ports 29 30, which alternately connect a supply-pipe 31 with the pipes 29 and 30, so that by turning the handle 82 in one direction air is allowed to pass through the pipe 29 to the check-valve 21 and thence to the port 20 of the cylinder 18, driving the piston in one direction and moving the pinion and sprocket-wheel 12, and by turning the handle 32 in the opposite direction the valve will admit air to the pipe 30, leading to the check-valve 22, and thence to the port 19 of the cylinder 18, driving the piston, the pinion 15, and sprocket-wheel 12 in the opposite direction. 7

In order that the finger 8 may be automat ically engaged with and disengaged from the elevator-door, it is mounted, as already described, on the splined shaft 4. At one end of this shaft is a crank 33, the outer end of which crank is pivoted to the rod 34, which runs along the side of the elevator-car, and at its other end is pivoted to a crank 35, which is provided with bearings 36 on the top of the car. Pivoted to the crank 35 is a slide 37, which engages with and moves on the sinuous standard or way 38, which extends vertically through the elevator-shaft, so that the sinuosity of the way shall cause the rod 34 to reciprocate through the movement of the crank 35 and by means of the crank 33 rotate the shaft 4 sufficiently to bring the finger 8 from a vertical to a horizontal position and then back again to a vertical position. The finger, as has already been stated, is connected to the shaft by a feather and spline.

Secured to the door, made firm by braces 39 and extending above top 40 of the door, is a yoke 41, which is hinged to the door by hinges 42, soas to be capable of a slight lateral movement on its hinges. The space between the arms of this yoke is sufficient to freely receive the finger 8, so that when the ascending car reaches a curve in the sinuous way 38 at a landing and the finger 8 is thereby thrown from a vertical to ahorizontal po' sition it will enter between the bars of the yoke 41, thereby forming a connection between the traveler 5 and the elevator-door.

hen the finger 8 passes between the bars of the yoke, it will engage with one of the bars and first move the yokelaterally on its hinges 42 sufficiently to withdraw the locking-bolt 43, which is bolted to the yoke 41, from the stationary track 44 of the elevator shaft, thereby unlocking the door and permitting it to move laterally with the finger 8. This bolt 43 is provided with a spring, so that when the door is afterward shut, as is hereinafter described, the bolt 43 will lock itself.

The operation is as follows: As the elevator-car 2 ascends in the elevator-shaft the slide 37, following the bend in the track or way 38, moves the crank 35, which in turn moves the rod 34 and through the crank 33 the shaft 4, which is given a partial rotation, so as to bring the finger 8 from a vertical into a horizontal position and cause it to engage or pass between the arms of the yoke 41, which extends below the top of the elevator-door 40, and the finger 8 rides in the yoke untilthe car is stopped at the landing. In case the car should not be stopped at the landing the finger passes out of the yoke without operating any of the parts. When the car is stopped at the landing and the operator desires to open the door of the car, he moves the handle 32 of the valve 31 to permit air to pass through the pipe 29 to the check-valve 21. This check-valve 21 is normally open, and the air passes freely through the same to the port in the cylinder 18 and drives the piston toward the other end of the cylinder. The rack 16 on the end of the piston-rod 17, engaging the pinion 15, causes the sprocket-wheel 12 to revolve and by means of the chain 10 draws back the traveler 5 on the bar 4. As soon as the traveler 5 begins to move the finger 8, pressing against one side of the yoke 41, moves the yoke laterally on its hinges 42 sufficiently to with draw the bolt 43 from the standard or. track 44 of the elevator-shaft, therebyv unlocking the door and permitting itto move with the finger 8 and the traveler 5. Asthe pistonhead approaches the end of its stroke in the cylinder 18 the pinion 27 will havemovedthe sectors 26 and and will have caused the piston 23 in the valve 21 to gradually close, thereby shutting olf the air from the port-20 of the cylinder 18, and causing the valve 22 to be opened to permit the air to pass to the port 19 of the cylinder whenever the p.osition of the valve 31 shall be changed. When it is desired to close the door, the operator moves the handle 32 so as to bring the valve 31 to its second position, which allows theair to pass through the pipe tothe-valve22. and thence to the port 19 in the cylinder 18 and to drive the piston-head and piston-rod 17 in the reverse direction, which in the manner already described operates the sprocketehain 10 and carries the traveler 5 back to its original position, the door moving with the finger 8. Vhen the door is closed,,the force of the spring 45 causes the bolt 43to lock the door. When the operatorcauses the car to again ascend, the slide 37 moves out of the sinuous portion of the way 38, which gives the shaft 4 a reverse quarter-revolution and draws the finger 8 into a-vertical position, where it is out of the way and not apt to en gage with the landing or to strike any obstruction.

As the position of the finger 8 is regulated automatically and entirely by the sinuous standard 38, it cannot be brought by the ele vator boy into a position where it. would eugage with the landing.

The advantages of my invention will be appreoiated by those skilled in the art.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a device for opening and closing doors, the combination of a traveler, a member oarried by the traveler and adapted to engage and move the door but normally disengaged therefrom, and mechanism for operating said member.

2. In a device for opening and closing elevator-doors, the combination of an elevatorcar, a traveler carried by the car, and a member, adapted to engage the several doors, carried by the traveler but having a movement independently thereof.

3. In a device for opening and closing elevator-doors, the combination of a traveler, a member carried by the traveler and adapted to engage the several doors, and devices situate at the several landings adapted to operate automatically said member.

4:. In devices for opening and closing elevator-doors, the combination of a traveler mounted upon the car, said traveler being provided with a member adapted to engage with the door, a sinuous Way, and operating mechanism extending from the sinuous way to said member.

5. In devices for opening and closing elevator-doors, the combination of a traveler mounted on the elevator-car, said traveler being provided with a member adapted to engage with the door, a sinuous way, extending vertically in the elevator-shaft, a slide mounted on the elevator-car and engaging With the sinuous way, and devices connecting the slide 6. In devices for opening and closing elevator-doors, the combination of a traveler mounted on the elevator-car, said traveler being provided with a member adapted to engage with the door, a pneumatic motor for operating the traveler, check-valves for regulating the flow of air to the motor-cylinder, and mechanism connected with the motor and arranged to open and close these valves automatically before the end of the piston-stroke of the motor.

7. In devices for opening and closing elevator-doors, the combination of a traveler mounted on the elevator-car, said traveler being provided with a member adapted to engage with the door, a yoke hinged to the door,and adapted to receive said member, and a locking-bolt arranged to be operated by the movement of the yoke.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand/ HOWARD M. JENKINS. Witnesses:

A. M. STEEN, W. F. STEWART. 

